Cost of Church marriage early 1800's

[sally]

Thought you might find this interesting.

Inside cover of Terrington St.Johns Book of Marriages 1813-1839

Marriage by Banns 7s 0d
Marriage by Licence 13s 0d
Funeral 1s 6d
Ambrose GOODE. vicar

Clerks Fees
Marriage by Banns 2s 6d + one shilling for the Banns
Marriage by Licence 5s 0d
Funeral 4s 0d
Out of Parish 6s 0d

It is no wonder that so many people 'lived in sin' with it costing so much let alone afford to be buried.
On one of the Examination papers I have a chap was in his 50s only earning 10 shillings a week in 1824. Another chap aged 18 was earning 10 pounds & 10 shillings a year which if I have my sums right was about 2 shillings a week.
Sally

[Geoffers]

Hello Sally, it's about 4 shillings a week. But still not an enormous amount. Thanks for those notes, it's amazing what you do find in a parish register, making it all the more worthwhile to browse through an entire register rather than just hunt for names alone.

A poster held by The National Archives, (doc ref MN12/8502) encouraged the industrious poor of Blofield Union to move to 'manufacturing counties' for the following wages in 1835:

A labouring man - 12 shillings per week
A lad of 17 or 18 - 8s
A boy of 16 - 5s
A boy of 14 - 4s
A girl of 15 to 20 or upwards - 5s 6d
A girl of 14 - 5s
A girl of 12 or 13 - 4s
A girl of 11 - 1s3d and schooling.

You can see why families were tempted by such riches!
Geoffers

[sally]

Oh Geoffers I hang my head in shame :o
Excuses - I had been compiling & posting lots of lists to the TAS Forum then posting them - I had just become a senior member & it had gone to my head ;) - It was nearly midnight.

No excuses really, even I should have known that just doing it the easy way - 50 goes into 200 4 times so 52 into 210 must be the same.|blush|

I agree that the extras you find in the registers can be little gems. We usually transcribe everything we find in the books & give these to the Wisbech & Fenland Museum along with the transcription.

continued below...

[joette]

I have Proclaimation of Marriage for my GGGggrandparents dated 1824.They married in St Cuthberts, Edinburgh.They had to pay the Parish Clerk(who coincidentaly may be a relation on the maternal side of the Family just trying to prove the connection)the princely sum of ten shillings to call the Banns.
No wonder they lived in common law here in Scotland & had multipleChristenings- the family record is ten ( thoughtmy gggggrandmother had been born too early for Guiness Bookof Records)

[sally]

We even had one gem where a vicar wrote a bit in the middle of the register saying he was not responsible for the poor condition of the book as it was like that when he took over the parish. Can't find that one at the moment but here is another.
Terrington St.John’s – back page of baptism register 1813-1847
"The Account of the Register books returned Terrington St.Johns in the County of Norfolk
One antient register book of all the baptisms, marriages & burials there, beginning in
the year of our Lord God 1538. This book is in part a transcript of a more antient one
(not by me seen) beginning in 1538 & ending, as to the part transcribed, with
Christopher LUNN 1641. Baptisms are then carried on to June 24, 1802; burials
to Decr 28th, 1788 & marriages to October 28, 1753 – Fresh bound 1829 –
Perchment – One, marriage register book, beginning Octr 1754 ending Novr 9,
1812 Bound, Paper Also, The Three new register books beginning 1813 –
Parchment bound, paper And, one paper book for entering publication of banns."
By me Ambrose GOODE Vicar
June 16. 1831
Sally

[Geoffers]

We even had one gem where a vicar wrote a bit in the middle of the register saying he was not responsible for the poor condition of the book as it was like that when he took over the parish.
Other counties may well be similar, but I've come across several registers in Norfolk where the incoming cleric has lamented the state of the registers and that they had 'fallen lapse' in the time of the previous incumbent. It's like they were absolving themselves from blame, just incase anyone carried out an audit and complained.

Geoffers